The Schnapsen Log

The Last Place You Look (interlude)

Martin Tompa

Here are winning lines of play if you lead ♠K at trick 5, Emmi discards ♣Q, and you draw either ♥J or ♦A from the stock. If you draw ♥J, you will be on lead from this position:

Emmi: (20 points)
♠ AQ
♥ Q
♣ —
♦ AK

You: (38 points)
♠ —
♥ KJ
♣ A
♦ TQ

You cannot simply cash your three winners, as Emmi will discard two queens and a king and your trick point total will only reach 65. Instead, cash only two of your winners, reserving ♥J to regain the lead later, and then lead ♦Q. If Emmi discarded ♠Q on your ♣A, she can cash two diamonds, but will eventually let you trump her ♠A for plenty of trick points. If instead she discarded ♦K on your ♣A, that will set up your ♦T as a winner when you regain the lead with ♥J.

If, rather than drawing ♥J from the stock, you were to draw ♦A, you would be on lead from this position:

Emmi: (20 points)
♠ AQ
♥ QJ
♣ —
♦ K

You: (38 points)
♠ —
♥ K
♣ A
♦ ATQ

If you begin by forcing Emmi to trump your ♣A, she will force you back with ♠Q and you will have lost trump control. Your only remaining trick will be ♦A, and you will finish with only 60 trick points and no chance of winning the final trick. Instead, you must pull one of her trumps before forcing her with ♣A. She will then be on lead from this position:

Emmi: (34 points)
♠ AQ
♥ —
♣ —
♦ K

You: (44 points)
♠ —
♥ —
♣ —
♦ ATQ

She can reach 61 trick points by cashing her spades, but eventually she must let you back in with a diamond and, whenever she does that, you will take the remaining tricks.

© 2013 Martin Tompa. All rights reserved.

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